Big Miracle Page #5

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in from anywhere.

Those oceans are so polluted, I'm

shocked I didn't find an old tire

wrapped around

one of its fins.

Maybe cutting him loose will

help him bounce back a little.

You're totally welcome,

by the way.

That's it.

Damn, this thing's a beast.

Believe me...

No, wait. Hold a

second. All right, ready?

Believe me, if the oil

were above the ground,

it'd make my life a whole

lot easier, but it's not.

But that does not mean we

don't care about God's creatures

just as much as anybody.

Yeah, that's good.

All right.

Hey, you make sure you

get lots of good footage

with me

and those big fish.

I just bought us

a load of Super Bowl ads.

When the public sees

the Alaska Northern logo,

I want them thinking, "Friend

of the Environment," all right?

Last chance, cardboard?

No? Have a nice day.

Half price, only $10.

No, I'm okay.

Okay.

- You look like you need a...

- Mmm-mmm.

Okay.

I only sold a couple

of pieces, Grandpa.

And the people

are asking for them.

So, what's the big deal?

Come with me for a minute.

Okay?

Kneel down, right there.

What?

Kneel down right there.

Come on.

Put your ear

on the ice.

Come on, listen.

You hear them?

The mother is speaking

to the little one.

Her calls

are calm, gentle.

Soothing.

Do you hear her?

Mmm-hmm.

What do you think she is

trying to tell her baby?

What you said.

Excuse me!

I seem to have lost

three whales around here.

Anybody see them?

Anybody?

All right. Let's take

a look at these critters.

Hello, down there!

Anybody home?

Did you see that?

Do it again, I dare you!

And the plight of these

whales represents so much more

than them being

trapped in the ice.

Soon, the water itself is

going to be a threat to us all.

In 15 years, the biggest

business in the US

is going to be bottled water

because we're not going to

want to touch the tap stuff.

And enjoy your fish now

because soon

the mercury content

will make it

too dangerous to eat.

So, if you want tremors and

babies born with terrible...

What?

Congratulations, 10 million

people just changed the channel.

Well...

Come on, Rachel.

Nobody on the earth cares more

about these whales than you do.

So, tell people about it.

You were down there.

What's Bamm-Bamm like?

Or, to be honest, why do we care

about whales this much at all?

I mean, what if they were

deer or lizards or something?

Because even though they are

strong and big, and powerful,

they're vulnerable, too.

And it just makes you wish

that you were Superman,

and you could just scoop them

up and bring them somewhere safe.

And what's heartbreaking

is they know

what's going on.

They know they're in trouble

and they're scared.

And we ache for them because

they're so much like us.

We get scared

and we're vulnerable,

and we need help

sometimes, too.

Better?

Much.

Those three

California gray whales

trapped in

the Arctic ice off Alaska

are no nearer

to freedom tonight.

I don't understand.

Can't you just patch me

through to the helicopter?

Okay, when he returns,

please have him call.

Thank you.

The whales' only

real hope of escape

is the unusual hover barge

en route from Prudhoe Bay.

The size of a hockey rink,

the barge uses tons of compressed

air to push down the ice,

cracking,

then demolishing it.

The hover barge is expected

to arrive in 48 hours.

Colonel?

These are from the White House.

They need a progress report.

Great.

Now all I need is some

actual progress to report.

Kelly Meyers.

Yes, ma'am, this is Colonel Scott

Boyer of the Alaska National Guard.

I'm told you called

a few times.

Yeah, just a few.

Colonel, we'd like to set up a call

for you with the President tomorrow.

Yes, ma'am. The President?

It'll take just a couple of minutes.

He'll thank you for your work.

He'll reiterate the

administration's support, and...

I can't really

commit to a time.

You can't find five minutes for

the President of the United States?

I'm trying to crack

a pretty tough nut up here.

If I can nail down a time, I'll let

you know before 0900 Alaska Standard.

Okay.

Colonel Boyer.

Are you always

so formal?

Do you know how to speak

like a normal person?

Like, when your mother asks you if

you liked the cookies that she sent,

do you say "Roger that"?

Damn, no, I'm sorry. I...

It's okay to lighten

up a little bit.

Here, why don't

we just start over?

Yes, ma'am.

Hi, I'm Kelly.

Hi, I'm Colonel...

I'm Scott.

And I'm exhausted.

The saga of the three whales

trapped by Arctic ice

and the heroic efforts of rescuers to

save them grew more desperate today.

The whales are

fatigued by their efforts to survive,

and one of them,

the baby of the family,

affectionately

known as Bamm-Bamm,

may be seriously ill.

You hear that?

It's not good.

Sounds like an old man.

Sounds like pneumonia.

Where is that damn barge?

Yes, I'm ready for the call.

Patch him through.

Your controls.

My controls.

Yes. Hello, Mr. President.

Yes, sir, it's going

very well, sir. Very well.

We're making

steady progress.

Thank you, sir.

Just happy to be part of such

an important operation, sir.

Yes, sir.

Okay. Goodbye, Mr. President.

I just spoke

to President Reagan.

I noticed you didn't mention we've

only moved this freaking barge 20 feet.

My controls.

Your controls.

Today the whales' plight

officially became

a national affair.

We're very

proud of all of you

and what you're doing

up there.

Nice job, Meyers.

Meanwhile,

the whales' situation

becomes more dire

with each passing day.

With weather conditions

deteriorating,

a brutal cold front could easily

seal their fate in a matter of days.

In Northern Alaska,

ice is always the enemy.

It's a great idea.

No, it's not.

It's stupid.

Well, the people in

Barrow don't think so.

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Oh! You spoke with

the people in Barrow, did you?

Yes, I did, and they're waiting for us.

This is ridiculous.

I don't even know why we're

having this conversation.

Why shouldn't we go?

Because

we got to pay

my father back the money

he loaned us

to build these things.

If I take off time from work to

go up to Alaska for some whales,

that ain't going to happen!

This whale thing could be the

publicity we've been looking for.

You know how well those

things worked up at Moose Lake.

They thawed Ed Maura's

party boat right out!

Give me a break, all right?

That's down here.

It's not up at the North

Pole, for Pete's sake.

Ice is ice, Dean.

This is our moment.

One day, I'm telling you, there is going

to be a plaque right up on that wall

reminding everyone that this

was the day we took our shot

and we showed the world what

the Hootkin 450 could do!

Hi! Are you the brave men

going up to save the whales?

Yes. Yes, we are.

That's not

going to be enough.

Yikes.

I really have you up on the ropes,

and you come out with "soil."

I have to get

back out on the ice.

But first, I'm going

to clean your clock.

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